


Back in my atmosphere

by HistoriaGloria



Series: Sometimes a family is a space-god, an alien, a group of century-old robots and a collection of mildly broken humans. [1]
Category: Steam Powered Giraffe
Genre: Angst, Cute, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, The Vice Quadrant, au-ish, good feels, rav/cosmo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-21
Updated: 2018-07-27
Packaged: 2019-04-25 15:22:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 15,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14381469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HistoriaGloria/pseuds/HistoriaGloria
Summary: 'Cosmo is quiet. Rav knows that he thinks he hasn't noticed.'Ravaxis tries to pry to a little information out of his boyfriend and finds out that really, he just wants to go home...So they head towards the Earth.





	1. Then I saw your eyes

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so this is a little AU-ish? Basically, Cosmo didn't make it to the Necrostar after going through the Achilles Rift. Instead, he met Rav and stayed with him.  
> This is set in 2018, because I love all of the robots.  
> Hope you like it! I'll try to update every other Friday until I work out when this is finished!

Cosmo is quiet. Rav knows that he thinks he hasn't noticed. It is not unusual for his boyfriend to sit and listen to him without speaking, all with a small warm smile that makes Rav's heart swell. But that is not what is happening today. Cosmo is staring out at the stars beyond the S.S. Alexander and he hasn't spoken since Rav woke up. Rav wonders if he had left their bed as soon as he had dozed off. Again, that isn't wholly unusual. Cosmo didn't need to sleep but he liked to hold Rav until Rav did sleep and then sometimes he would stay throughout his rest and sometimes he would wander off through the S.S. Alexander. 

But something is wrong.

Rav has spent over 30 years with this man; he knows when something is up. 

He comes over and gently places a hand on Cosmo's shoulder. The other gives a soft sigh and leans into Rav's touch. The pilot frowns; he recognises this sector of space. Without moving away from Cosmo, he checks their co-ordinates and he is right. They are in the same sector of space he found Cosmo in all those years ago, moments away from the Achilles Rift.

"You alright, darlin’?" Rav asks softly, rubbing Cosmo's shoulder. It takes the spaceman a long moment to respond.

"I miss home… I miss Earth! I miss my family. I never went back after I changed. Couldn’t manage it…" Rav winces and draws Cosmo towards him. He knows what it is like to leave everything you had behind, despite how much it might hurt. The other moves without resistance, head resting on Rav's shoulder.

"We could go through the Rift, ya know. The Alexander would make it."

"It would still take a while to get to Earth. And they might be gone." Cosmo mumbles, but there is an edge of hope to his voice.

"We have nowhere else to be, Cos." Rav presses a gentle kiss to Cosmo's head and the spaceman sighs.

"You'd do that? For me?" Rav rolls his eyes.

"Cosmo, I'd live on Earth for all of eternity if it meant bein’ with you." Cosmo's white eyes fix on the pilot and a smattering of blue nebula dart across his cheeks, but he is grinning.

"You're a sap." Rav snorts out a laugh and ruffles Cosmo's flyaway hair.

"You love me anyway," he sing-songs as he moves over to the controls to adjust the Alexander's course. 

"I do." Cosmo says, softly and gets up. The sincerity in his voice makes Rav's cheeks burn but he is busy inputting the new course, so Cosmo doesn't see it. The space cowboy calls out,

"Gidget, get the deflector shields up to maximum, we're going dimension hoppin' again!" The robot immediately protests that it isn't a good idea, but Rav just huffs and tells him to get on with it. He flashes Cosmo a roguish grin and is rewarded with a burst of blue stars on the spaceman's cheeks.

"Ya might want to hold on." And with that, Rav turns the S.S. Alexander into the Achilles Rift. 

* * *

 

Cosmo wasn't lying when he said it would take them a while to get to Earth. The dimension jump shakes the Alexander slightly, but the old ship is as sturdy as ever as it jolts through space. It does take them well over a month to reach Earth but the look on Cosmo's face when they finally settle into orbit makes every second worth it. Whilst they travel, Rav builds a rudimentary cloaking device, so that he, Gidget and Booplax can remain on the S.S. Alexander whilst it secretly orbits Earth and Cosmo can visit his home. Well, that had been Rav's plan.

"Come with me," Cosmo requests softly, face pressed against the airlock, watching the planet below. Rav chokes on the artificial air.

"Cos, Commander, darlin', I can't zip through space like you," he protests but Cosmo just chuckles.

"I know that. I can take you with me; I've done it before. You won't get hurt." The pilot shudders at the thought.

"Cos-"

"Please, Rav. I'd like you to be there, if..." The spaceman tails off and suddenly Rav feels guilty. Cosmo wants him there in case his family is gone, in case they shun him, in case something goes wrong. He reaches out to grasp his boyfriend's hand and Cosmo's skin shifts from the melancholy blue it had been to its neutral purple.

"I trust you." That earns him a warm smile and a quick kiss. "Gigdet, Booplax, be good! Me and the Commander'll be back soon!" 

"BOOPLAX!" hollers his little alien friend in response, making them both laugh and before Gidget can start berating them, Rav inhales deeply and presses the open airlock button. 

* * *

 

Flying with Cosmo had always been exhilarating and slightly terrifying, even when they were on a planet, but racing through the atmosphere at unfathomable speeds is something completely new. Rav clings to him, trying not to scream or breathe or do anything. He doesn't quite understand how he isn't burning alive, but he trusts Cosmo with his entire being and he had said that he had done it before. It only takes moments before they carefully land in what appears to be a rural area. From the position of the sun, it’s just before midday but Rav has to focus on taking time to breathe, not releasing Cosmo. His boyfriend chuckles.

"You can let me go, Rav, we're on the planet now." Rav shakes his head and swallows down his nausea. 

"N-n-not yet." Cosmo takes pity on him then, gently wrapping one arm around his back until Rav's legs stop trembling. 

"Okay?" The concern is palpable in his voice but Rav nods.

"Yeah, I'm good. Just... Yeah, that was pretty intense." Cosmo gently kisses his cheek and Rav feels his face burn, going a deep green. 

"I'm sorry. I just-" Rav shakes his head, his brain finally focusing, and gets on his tiptoes to kiss Cosmo's nose.

"I'm fine, babe, hush. Now, where are we off?" His boyfriend accepts this with a raised brow, but he points to an odd-looking house at the top of a nearby hill.

"Walter Manor." 


	2. Folks you knew don't seem the same

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rav meets some very old, somewhat excitable and tuneful members of Cosmo's family. And he's surprised by their humanity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I am much happier with this chapter than the last one! Think I'm getting into writing Rav. This whole thing is set in early 2018 because I really just wanted to write all the bots, so anniversary time!   
> Really hope you guys like this chapter!   
> Next one will be up on the 18th of May

It takes them barely ten minutes to walk to the house and Cosmo is silent throughout the trek. Rav doesn't want to push conversation so he just holds his hand tightly. The grounds of the manor are surrounded by a large metal fence and a ring of trees and Rav wonders if they’re going to just walk in. However, when they reach them, Cosmo merely slings his arm tightly around Rav's waist and flies them over, landing next to what appears to be a duck pond. Cosmo opens his mouth to speak when there is a screech, like metal on metal and they both turn around very slowly. Stood several feet away from them, is a female robot and Rav blinks. She's a lot more human than Gidget but by the steam puffing from her cheek vents, she's powered very differently. Mismatched blue and green optics fix on them and Rav doesn’t know what to do. Cosmo is gripping his hand tightly, protectively, when the robot speaks,

"P-P-Peter Four?"  And Cosmo's mouth drops open. Rav knows that he had been called Peter before he was Cosmo, but it is so rare that anyone calls him that that he had practically stopped using it. He also knows that Cosmo’s grandfather had built very human robots, but that doesn’t mean that seeing the automaton isn’t surprising.

"Rabbit?" asks Cosmo, his voice high-pitched in shock. The robot huffs a small amount of steam out of her mouth and nervously tugs at the black dress she is wearing.

"I kn-kn-know I don't look l-l-like I used to... I felt, I wanted…" And suddenly Cosmo is running over and hugging the robot to his chest.

"You're still alive! You're still functioning!" He pulls back slightly to grin at her. "You're beautiful and as long as you’re happy, I am." The robot beams at Cosmo, placing her hand on his cheek.

"C-Course I’m alive, dummins. You don’t get rid of ol’ R-R-Rah-Rabbit that easily. But, never mind me, l-l-look at you, Petes! Made of stars n-n-now."

"I'm sorry I didn't come home, Rabbit, I just... It was all a bit much. And Holly..." Rabbit shakes her head, patting his cheek gently.

"Y-Y-you're home now. And wh-who's your friend?" The robot is smirking at Rav and he could feel his cheeks darkening again. Cosmo's cheeks flash bright pink but he steps over to Rav and takes his hand.

"This is Ravaxis Starburner. He's my... Um, my, uh..."

"Boyfriend," Rav cuts in smoothly, to save his floundering lover. "Rav’s just fine." And he holds out a hand which Rabbit shakes, her smirk not falling.

"Guh-Guh-good to meet ya! Well done, Petes. Now, come on! You've c-come at the best time, everyone is here for our anniversary!" Rabbit turns to head into the house and Cosmo follows immediately, Rav beside him.

"Anniversary?" Cosmo asks.

"Y-y-yeah! Our 121st birthday. Or, like 10 years since we rebranded the band and played as Steam Powered Giraffe."

"You still play? That's so great, Rabbit!"

“Oh, y-y-yeah! We’re a proper b-band an’ everything. The fans really l-l-like us.”

“I’m glad. Nice to know that more than just the Walters is hearing how well you guys perform.”

The three of them step through a door way with no door and Rav frowns but doesn't say anything. He is sure that Cosmo will explain more about his family in due time. Rabbit shouts into the house,

"HEY GUH-GUH-GUYS! I F-F-FOUND SOME OLD FRIENDS IN THE GARDEN, C-COME ON!" Cosmo is staring at everything they pass, a huge grin on his face.

"It's barely changed," he whispers and Rav chuckles softly. "I mean, aside from the lack of doors. That's new." It's true; none of the rooms have doors as they follow Rabbit into a large living room. Sat on a bright red sofa, is a little brass and gold robot watching cartoons on a TV. He looks up at them and gives a loud squeal,

"PETER!" Cosmo laughs and Rav has to bite his lip to prevent himself from waxing poetic about how beautiful that sound is. By God, it could create entire galaxies and it has been far too long since Rav had heard it. The robot throws himself at Cosmo and the spaceman scoops him up with ease.

"The Jon! It's so good to see you again." The bot presses his hands to Cosmo's cheeks.

"You’re back! We missed you so much, Peter. The Spine was especially sad when he thought you were dead. And now you're all made of stars! So pretty! But your hair is still as messy." Rav snickers at the comment about his hair but he is a little astounded at how quickly the brass robot chatters. The Jon looks at him. "You have a green friend! He looks like a cowboy; are you a real cowboy? Do you have a horse?" And suddenly Rav is floundering.

"Uh, no, I don't. But I do have a whip and that's like a cowboy, right?" The Jon beams and wriggles until Cosmo puts him down. The grin that Cosmo is wearing is so bright it could cause stars to supernova.

"Can I see it? That's so exciting!" Rav moves to get out his plasma whip when another robot steps into the room at the other end, distracting them all. Rav huffs, glad that he is stood with The Jon who seems to be a normal height because Rabbit is as tall as Cosmo and this new robot is taller. Rav feels very short.

"Honestly, Rabbit, what's all this about..." The new robot is silver and has a warm baritone voice, but he trails off as soon as he sees Cosmo. Cosmo inhales sharply.

"The Spine..." The silver robot strides across the room and stares into Cosmo's white eyes, his metal face unreadable. "I'm sorry..." chokes out the spaceman and Rav tenses, ready to defend his partner. Would The Spine be upset that the Commander hadn’t come home? "I should, I should have come home, should have told-"

The silver robot cuts him off by hugging him tightly and Cosmo wastes no time in returning the embrace.

"You're here now, Peter. And I'm so glad you are." A single glowing blue tear trails down Cosmo's face but he's clinging to this robot and Rav just smiles. Across the room, Rabbit grins, her silver teeth glinting.

"The Spine looked after Peter lots when he was little," whispers The Jon loudly and Rav relaxes completely. Cosmo had clearly missed these robots.

"What is all the hub-bub?" asks a new voice as three different robots enter.

"Why is The Spine hugging that purple man?" The question comes from a small pink robot and The Spine lets go of Cosmo; both of them discretely wipe their eyes. Cosmo moves over to grasp Rav's hand again.

"Oh-h-h, right, you guys won't kn-know each other!" chimes in Rabbit excitedly.  "This is Hatchworth, y-y-ya know, who was in the Vault?" A moustachioed robot waves warily at them but he still smiles. Cosmo nods in understanding.

"Who fixed him?"

"Mister Peter Six!" says The Jon, bounding over to Rabbit. "He's around here somewhere." Rav blinks. Cosmo had told him he was the fourth Peter Walter, but Rav hadn't really believed him. Rabbit speaks again, waving to the little pink robot.

"This is Upgrade, she was part of the band, but not like, the earlier w-w-wars and stuff. Now, she’s a princess in Kazooland! And this is Zero!" A wave to a smiling robot which was a mash-up of metals. "He recently got c-c-converted to be in the band!"

"Hi!" chorus the three robots in unison and Rav feels a chuckle bubble up from his chest. The Spine goes to speak, gesturing to Cosmo,

"This is Peter Four, or... Commander Cosmo, wasn't it?" Blue nebula spark over Cosmo's cheeks and he nods a little.

"Ye-eah. It fit, after everything. And, uh, this is my boyfriend, Ravaxis. Or just Rav." Rav gives them all a crooked grin, his canine teeth flashing slightly. The Spine crooks one brow but before he can speak, Upgrade chimes in,

"Purple is very pretty, but pink is better, as a colour for skin." And Rav’s grin shifts to a smirk.

"I can make him go pink if ya like?" And before Cosmo can protest, Rav grabs him by the collar and drags him down to kiss him deeply. Sure enough, when Rav releases him, Cosmo's skin had shifted into a bright pink, covered in glowing blue stars. Upgrade, The Jon and Rabbit all titter at the change.

"Ra-av!" whines Cosmo. He always had hated the fact that he looked like candyfloss when he blushed. The Spine is smirking, as Cosmo gives a childish pout. Rav is melting. It's been so long since the Commander had relaxed enough to act childishly, and he is suddenly very glad that he's here to see it.

"You guys are playing music again, right?" asks Cosmo, trying to move the attention from his shining skin. The Spine is the one who responds,

"Peter Five, do you remember him? He was only a child when you... Left. But, um, he fixed us up after The Vietnam War in the '60s and made sure that we couldn't be weapons again. We're just musicians now." Cosmo looks relieved.

"Thank God. Seeing you all come creaking back from the Second World War was rough enough. I'm glad your war days are over." Rabbit gave a heavy sigh and nodded,

"So are we. N-n-now, come sit down and t-tell us all about what you’ve been up to.”

Rav and Cosmo move over to sit on the couch as the bots gather around. Cosmo turns to chatter with Rabbit and The Spine as Zero sidles over to Rav.

"Mr Rav? Can I try on your hat?" Rav laughs and takes off his hat, smoothing down his corkscrew curls.

"There ya are. And it's just Rav." Zero gives him a wide grin and perches the hat jauntily on his head. "Suits you!" chuckles the cowboy as The Jon slips into Zero's lap.

"Rav's so cool! A cowboy, in space and an alien!" Rav can feel his cheeks burning a darker green. Zero gasps excitedly and readjusts Rav’s hat.

“I think that space is so cool! Do you have a spaceship?” asks the bot and Rav nods.

“Yeah, she’s called the S.S. Alexander. She’s in orbit right now. Cosmo- I mean, Peter, brought us down here with his superpowers.” That makes the robots giggle, hanging on to Rav’s every word. He is somewhat amazed by them; by their clear differences in personality. The whimsical way that The Jon and Zero acted was so different from The Spine’s kindly seriousness or Rabbit’s warm charm. He is trying to work out how to word this when there's a shout from deeper in the Manor,

"Bots! We're back and we brought ice cream!"

"Ice cream?!" Zero, The Jon, Rabbit and Upgrade bolt out of the room. The Spine rolls his photoreceptors and speaks,

"Honestly. That'll be the human members of our band, Michael, Matt and Steve, coming back from the grocery store. They'll be excited to meet you."

“Well. Ma-tt is not in the ba-nd any-more. He is do-ing other things now. And Mich-ael is just back for a bit,” explains Hatchworth, in a slow, careful voice, which reminds Rav of Gidget and his primitive speech programme.

“But they are all here for the anniversary,” says The Spine, lightly.

Sure enough, the robots return a moment later, dragging three rather confused-looking men. Cosmo hasn’t let go of Rav’s hand yet and his grasp tightens ever so slightly at the arrival of new people. They all freeze, jaws open at the sight of the spaceman and the cowboy sitting on the couch.

“Guys, th-th-this is Peter Four and his boyfriend, Rav!” Rabbit chirps happily, clinging to a large tub of vanilla ice cream which The Jon is trying to wrestle off her.

“Um,” says a guy with dyed dreadlocks, staring at Rav which makes him scowl a little. “I’m Steve? This is Matt and Michael.” Matt, a grinning guy with an impressive beard, steps over.

“Sorry to pry or anything, but you’re Commander Cosmo, right?” Cosmo nods and beside him, Rav relaxes slightly. Fans of Cosmo were usually okay. Matt’s grin only grows. “My dad used to talk about you loads when I was a kid. I didn’t realise you were still on Earth.”

“Just back for a family visit,” Cosmo chuckles and waves a hand at the robots. Matt gives a guffaw. Michael gives them a small smile and comes to sit beside Rav.

“You seem pretty calm about a literal alien and a space-god sittin’ on ya sofa,” Rav points out and Michael shrugs slightly.

“I’ve lived with the Walters all my life. I’m used to this kinda thing.” There is a clang as The Jon finally manages to get the ice cream and takes off across the room with it, Rabbit in hot pursuit. Cosmo laughs softly beside him as him and Matt turn from their conversation with Steve to watch the robots’ antics. The Spine gives a long-suffering sigh and comes to stand beside Michael as Hatchworth joins in the madness, trying to intercept The Jon.

“They’re so human…” Rav mumbles, grinning widely. “I’ve met loads of ‘bots, but none were anywhere near this sentient.” Michael nods.

“Yeah, they always have been impressive. Don’t even know why and I’m their mechanic. Bit of a Walter secret.” Cosmo huffs beside them

“Nah, it’s no Walter secret; I don’t know why they’re like this.” Rav laughs and leans over to kiss Cosmo’s cheek.

“None of us do,” mutters The Spine in a voice that was part affection, part exasperation and part amusement. Rav couldn’t help but relax against his boyfriend. He feels so content right now, with Cosmo basking in the love of a family he thought he had lost.

 

* * *

 

The afternoon passes in much the same manner, conversations and stupid games until a woman steps into the room.

“Alright, you toe-rags, din-” Her jaw drops wide open upon seeing Rav and Cosmo. Currently, Rav is wearing The Jon’s hat, laughing with him and Hatchworth; Cosmo is letting Upgrade poke the glowing star-freckles on his cheeks. Upon seeing the woman, Cosmo leaps to his feet, hand over his mouth and Rav frowns.

“Wanda.”

“Uh-oh…” mumbles The Jon beside Rav, scooting back a little. Across the room, Rabbit and The Spine look sheepish. The woman, Wanda, steps over to Cosmo. Her eyes are wide, and her mouth is open, but she raises a hand as though to caress his cheek. And smacks him sharply across the jaw. Rav jolts. He knows that it couldn’t hurt him, but that is his boyfriend after all.

“Would it have KILLED you to call, Peter?! To visit?! To let us know you weren’t dead?! Hadn’t this family lost enough by the time we lost you?!” Cosmo touches his jaw gently and looks at his feet. Rav is surprised to see him look so… defeated. He has seen this man destroy individuals who crossed him with little more than a shove and yet here, stood in front of this short woman, he looks different. He looks like a child. Rav realises with a shock that he’s not seeing Commander Cosmo anymore. He’s just seeing Peter Walter, being scolded.

“I’m sorry, sis, just, I… I didn’t know what you’d think. I mean… look at me.” Wanda scoffs.

“Peter Walter the Fourth, don’t you dare give me that. After what happened with our father and Norman, would this family have cared? I thought you were dead! I thought I had lost my entire family!” Rav glances around the room, not wanting to watch this family spat. He is surprised to hear the sound of grinding gears and notices that Rabbit is trembling. Still sat on the sofa, Michael scowls.

“Wanda,” says the mechanic sharply. “Perhaps you could chew out your little brother another time?” Wanda looks at him furiously, but he simply jerks his head towards Rabbit. The Spine has stepped over to her and is now embracing his sister carefully. Both of them keep their photoreceptors on the ground but Rav knows that look: guilt. He is sure there is a story behind all of this, but it seems far too personal to try to pry into. The fire dies from Wanda immediately and she nods.

“Dinner’s ready.” She stalks out of the room. Cosmo stands stock-still and Rav stands, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. He shrugs him off and slips away. Rav goes to follow but Rabbit shakes her head as The Spine steps after the spaceman.

“Let him go, R-R-R-Rav. Spine’ll speak to him.” Her voice quivers slightly but Rav never could take no for an answer and he hurries out after the two individuals.


	3. I'm just a person holding on to a dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After his little spat with his sister, Cosmo goes to find somewhere to think.  
> Rav and The Spine worry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Hope you like this one and if you read my recent one-shot about Peter VI, hope you liked that too!  
> I'm loving writing this!  
> Chapter title from Starlight Starshine, Vice Quadrant.  
> SPG belongs to the Bennetts!

Unluckily, Rav easily gets lost in the large, doorless Manor and it takes him at least fifteen minutes to work out that Cosmo and The Spine have gone outside and then another ten minutes to work out how to get there himself.

When he finally does get outside, The Spine and Cosmo are deep in conversation, stood at a row of gravestones.

“-should have come home. It wasn’t fair on her. I mean… we, we, we lost Dad and her husband in one day and then Marky just a year later. I remember how bad it was.”

“You were only a teenager when we lost your father. Just thirteen,” sighs The Spine.

“I remember you coming back from trying to recover Rabbit’s core.” Cosmo is focused on the gravestone directly in front of him and he is so still, he could be a statue. “You were carrying Three and he wasn’t moving. You looked so beaten up, your optics sparking and in your left hand was Rabbit’s core, but you couldn’t relax the hand to give it to Marky when he met you at the door. Those old smokestacks you had back then were shattered and there was so much blood and oil everywhere.”

The Spine shudders at the memory and Rav tries to stay as quiet as possible, not wanting to disturb the moment. “You came downstairs as soon as they had taken Three to the hospital.”

“Yeah,” Cosmo gives the automaton a small smile. “I sat with you all night, until you blacked out from a boiler leak.” Both are silent for a long moment and then The Spine hugs Cosmo again, tightly.

“Wanda will come around. I forgave you, didn’t I? She never could stay angry at you for very long, Peter.” Cosmo sniffles softly and buries his face into the automaton’s neck.

“What if she doesn’t?”

“Well, you’ve got a very persistent boyfriend to look after you either way.” Rav blushes a deep clover-green as The Spine looks at him and Cosmo turns too.

“Didn’t wanna interrupt ya,” he mumbles sheepishly, but Cosmo is already moving towards him.

“Rav… my dear Ravaxis.” He cups Rav’s cheek in one glowing purple hand. “What did I do to deserve someone so caring as a partner?” His voice is soft and Rav recognises the tone as the one that he saves for him, the one that felt like the cowboy had opened up this man to see all his secrets. But Rav was never very good at expressing emotions like that. So, he gives a small shrug and moves to grasp Cosmo’s other hand.

“Ya crashed into the side of my ship, Starboy, barely conscious and nearly dead. Because ya thought it was a great idea to shoot through the Achilles Rift whilst upset.” he teases and Cosmo laughs, leaning forward to peck Rav’s lips softly.

“That was the best mistake I ever made,” he murmurs. Rav grins up at him, his head slightly tilted to get the angle right.

“You are good to him, aren’t you?” It’s The Spine that speaks, his glowing green photoreceptors fixing on them. Rav’s cheeks flush.

“He’s changed my life, sir. When I met ‘im, I was a bit of a loose cannon, but havin’ the Commander, havin’ _Peter_ around, has been the greatest gift the cosmos has given me. I would be stupid not to be good to ‘im.” Rav can feel Cosmo’s grip on his hand tighten and he glances up to see that he is a very becoming shade of fuchsia at the cowboy’s words. The Spine gives them both a warm smile.

“That is good to hear.”

“Now, ya can say no and tell me to mind my own damn business, but can ya tell me what happened back there? With Rabbit and Wanda?” Cosmo sighs and shrugs.

“You deserve the truth. Wanda is my older sister. There was a time in our lives, in the 1950s, where this family almost lost everything.” The Spine steps in to back him up;

“A competing robotics group stole Rabbit’s core and experimented on it. Me and several Walter family members went to retrieve it. But the core had been damaged and there was a huge explosion. Peter’s Dad, Peter Walter the Second, and Wanda’s husband were killed instantly. I managed to get Peter Walter the Third back home, but he was severely injured by the explosion and died 6 years later. Rabbit has always blamed herself, no matter how many times we tell her not to.” Rav lowers his head and Cosmo gestures to the grave they had been stood in front of. The grave which reads Peter Walter II. Then, Cosmo speaks again,

“A year after the explosion, my older brother Mark died. Eleven years after that, I went up to space on the Cosmo and an energy beam from the rift hit me. Wanda lost her entire family and I couldn’t even bring myself to come home like this.” There is self-hatred in Cosmo’s voice and Rav rubs his arm gently.

“You lost all ya family too, Cosmo. Don’t forget that. That’s why we’re here, ain’t it?” Cosmo is silent for a long moment, not looking at Rav or The Spine. Rav wants to bring up Holly and how she affects this too, but that’s a touchy subject between him and Cosmo. It’s caused more than a few arguments, along the lines of Rav could never be as good as her and Cosmo really didn’t want to compare them. It’s taken Rav several years to understand that Cosmo didn’t want something like he had with Holly. He didn’t want it because he wasn’t just Peter Walter anymore and Rav could love Cosmo as much as he loved Peter; in a way Holly hadn’t had the chance.

“Thank you, Rav. I guess I hadn’t really thought about it like that.” He moves over to kiss the cowboy, short and sweet. Rav chuckles as he pulls away,

“Come on, Crystal-Heart. We’re here to visit your family and make up with them, so let’s go do that.” Cosmo winces a little.

“But, Rav-”

“‘But Rav’ nothin’! Come on.” He takes his boyfriend’s hand and tugs him back towards the house. Quietly, The Spine follows them, smiling a little. Rav relaxes ever so slightly at the automaton’s acceptance. He knows that it is completely natural to desire approval from his boyfriend’s family, but that doesn’t mean that he’s going to be open about it.


	4. A way into their hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cosmo faces his fears and reconciles with the human side of the family, which he thought he had completely lost. Rav remembers how good home-cooked food tastes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you are all enjoying this! It looks like it's going to be 7 or 8 chapters long, but I have so many more ideas for Rav and Bots interaction so it might end up being part of a series!
> 
> I'm also super excited because I got tickets to see SPG at the Asylum festival this August!!!

As they come back inside, Rav is smiling reassuringly. He can feel the nervousness from his boyfriend. The Spine takes the lead, heading towards a large dining hall. When they reach it, the bot gives them a smile.

“I will leave you to talk. I should go find my siblings.” The automaton clanks away and Cosmo inhales deeply, needlessly. 

“Alright, Rav. Let’s confront the other side of my family.” And so, they step into the dining room. Michael, Matt and Steve are sat there, with Wanda and 2 other people. As they enter, Wanda purses her lips. She looks straight past Cosmo to Rav and speaks,

“I apologise. You are a guest here and I was very rude.” Rav shrugs his shoulders.

“Naw, it’s Cos- Peter who ya should be talkin’ to, not me. He lost his family too.” Beside him, he can feel Cosmo tense. Wanda scowls and looks like she is going to snap at him when the woman who is sat next to her, interrupts,

“This young man has got a point, Wanda. It isn’t easy to change like that. Did you yell at my son when he refused to come out of his lab for over three months after his accident?” Beside her sits an elderly man in sunglasses, who immediately turns to the conversation. Wanda deflates slightly. 

“No,” she mutters.

“No,” repeats the man, deciding to join in, and he waves a hand to two seats opposite him, clearly inviting them to sit. “So, we’re not gonna chew out my… Uncle? I think. I lose track. But the point stands.” Cosmo blinks and then grins.

“You were so little when I last saw you, Five.” He tugs Rav over to sit with him and Rav stays quiet. It’s unusual for Cosmo to be the one to talk but this is his family. The sunglasses-wearing man grins. 

“It’s good to see you again, Four. And yes,” He flips up his sunglasses to reveal that he simply does not have any eyes, just flaps of skin where his eyes should be. Rav cocks one eyebrow, but he’s not really surprised. He’s used to aliens after all. “I can actually see you. Not sure how, but Blue Matter does weird and wonderous things to humans.”

“What happened? You had eyes as a kid,” says Cosmo, frowning.

“Little - ahem - accident whilst repairing the ‘bots after the Vietnam War. But that’s nothing for a Walter! I mean, look at you! Or even my son or Norman. I don’t suppose either of you have met them, have you?” Rav shakes his head and Five, whom he now presumes must actually be called Peter, turns his attention to Michael.

“Mister Reed?” Michael startles and looks up from the food he has been picking at. 

“Oh, sorry, sir. No, I’ve not seen Six since yesterday. And Norman is taking a nap.”

“Shame. I’m sure they’ll come out at some point. Now, friend of Four, what’s your name?” And Rav blinks, not expecting to be addressed. 

“Uh, Rav. Ravaxis Starburner. I’m Peter’s boyfriend.” The woman sat beside Five gives him a sweet smile and speaks,

“It’s very nice to meet you, Rav. I’m Annie Walter and I gather you’ve met Wanda. This is my husband, Peter Five. Would you like something to eat?” Rav gives her the most charming smile he can manage.

“That’d be much appreciated, Mrs Walter. Anythin’ would be fine, I’m not fussy.”

“You eat human food?” asks Steve and Rav rolls his eyes. He had picked up the habit from Cosmo. Seeing as he owned no pupils with which to emphasise the eyeroll, it was never something he had done before. But Cosmo did it commonly, flicking his pure white eyes slightly under his eyelids and Rav had begun to copy without really knowing it.

“I’m humanoid, ya know. I’ve spent a lotta time with humans. I eat whatever. Interdimensional travellers like meself don’t tend to be picky.” Steve shrugs and returns to eating.

“What about you, Peter Four?” asks Annie as she gets up. Cosmo smiles faintly. 

“I would love some, Annie.” Rav doesn’t comment on the fact that Cosmo has no need to eat. He knows that his partner is being polite.

“I made lasagne in an attempt to coax my son out of his lab,” sighs Annie as she moves away to get two more plates. “Perhaps I should send a bot down to drag him out.”

“Hatchworth would do it. He’s stubborn enough not to go anywhere until Six comes out,” offers Michael with a slight shrug. 

“True and they hold a special kind of relationship after he fixed him. Ah, it’s only one day though. I’ll send Hatchworth down tomorrow if he hasn’t emerged by then,” muses Annie as she returns, handing over the plates of lasagne. It’s only then that Rav realises how much he has missed good food. Living on the S.S. Alexander is fine, but he’s no cook and the old ship lacks facilities. He lives off packets of nutrients and tasteless rations. Whatever is cheap and easy. But now, there is a hot, home-cooked meal in front of him and Rav is practically salivating. The others around the table continue to talk but Rav is too focused on fighting between the urge to wolf down the lasagne or to savour every little bite. He devours half of the plate before he forces himself to slow down and enjoy it. There is a very familiar, deep chuckle beside him and Rav glances up to see Cosmo smiling at him.

“Enjoying that?” he asks, his voice low and Rav nods quickly.

“Mrs Walter, sorry, this is really great! Thank you.” Annie laughs easily and waves a hand.

“It’s nothing. Glad you’re enjoying it.”

“Rav has a terrible tendency to live off things that are barely food on the S.S. Alexander,” teases Cosmo and Rav can feel the blush rising in his cheeks. “Protein packs and ration biscuits are not food.” Steve looks aghast.

“But, like, what about actual food?” Rav shrugs sheepishly, swallowing down another bite of lasagne.

“I kinda got used to eatin’ ‘not really food’ things so I just stopped carin’. But this, this is somethin’ else.”

“Couldn’t do that,” mutters Matt, shaking his head as Rav continues to demolish his lasagne. He notes that Cosmo has eaten most of his own, enjoying the taste of food. 

“So, the S.S. Alexander is your spaceship?” asks Michael, lightly and Rav nods.

“Yeah. She’s small, kinda rusty and pretty darn old, but she’s mine. There’s two others on the crew aside from Starburst here an’ me; Gidget, my ‘bot and Booplax, a lil’ alien friend of mine who I’ve pulled from more than one sticky situation.”

“You have a robot?” says Peter Five with interest.

“Yep. He’s nowhere near as advanced as the ‘bots here, though. I mean, in terms of bein’ sentient.” Peter Five chuckles.

“Don’t think that there will be bots as sentient as these ever again, I admit.” That causes a chuckle to ripple around the table and even Wanda smiles. 

“Where are they, anyway?” she asks and Cosmo shrugs, replying,

“Spine said he was going to go find them. Is Rabbit okay?” he directs the question at Michael who nods slowly.

“Yeah. After you two left, The Jon and Hatchworth distracted her with the last bits of the ice-cream.” 

“I should go apologise to her,” murmurs Wanda. “It wasn’t really fair of me to bring up what happened; I know how it upsets her and The Spine. And…” Here, she pauses and turns to Cosmo. “I’m sorry, Peter. I didn’t really think. It must have been hard for you to change so drastically and with Holly as well… I’m sorry.” Rav realises that he has been tensing his jaw since Wanda started speaking and now he lets himself relax. She understands. She had just been hasty earlier, and she couldn’t really be blamed for that. Cosmo gives her a warm smile, gets up, and moves around the table to hug his older sister.

“I’m sorry too, sis. I know I should have come back sooner.”

“We’re all just glad you’re back now.” Wanda murmurs into his shoulder as they hug. And Rav’s shoulders drop as he relaxes completely. This is all that his boyfriend desired and it’s so fulfilling to see it come true. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from 'A way into your heart', MKIII


	5. I don't want to live my life alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After managing not to die meeting Cosmo's family, Rav relishes in some time with the 'bots and his partner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Hope you're still enjoying this! I've worked out how long its going to be, but it also looks like I'm going to start a Rav/Cosmo series. Thank you all so much for your support!

Wanda and Annie insist that Rav and Cosmo remain the night and Rav doesn’t argue. Gidget and Booplax are perfectly capable of looking after themselves. Besides, he really doesn’t want to take Cosmo away from his family.

After eating, they return to talking with the bots again in a large living room that Rav hadn’t yet found but this house just seems to get bigger the more time he spends in it. Rav has a long conversation with Wanda which starts with the ‘if-you-hurt-my-little-brother-I’ll-break-your-nose’ talk (which Rav considers rather amusing seeing as Cosmo could kill him with a glare) and ends in embarrassing baby stories about his boyfriend. The man in question is too busy listening to the robots play ‘Clockwork Vaudeville’ to notice. This starts an impromptu concert; the robots are very excited to play songs that they had written. Rav’s personal favourite is ‘Mecto Amore’ but the Commander prefers ‘Electricity is in my Soul.’ The bots are just happy that they enjoy it and Rav loves them more and more every minute he spends in their company.

The night draws in faster than the cowboy expects and before he knows it, Matt and Steve are heading to their respective homes. He turns to look at Cosmo who is now propping up a sleepy Upgrade, talking quietly to The Spine who has The Jon powered down in his arms. Beside Rav, Zero is nodding off, the pilot’s hat, which he hadn’t bother to reclaim, slipping over his optics.

“L-l-looks like we sh-should all be g-getting some st-st-stasis,” chirrs Rabbit tiredly as Hatchworth pats her back. Rav can feel exhaustion tugging at him but he doesn’t give in just yet. Annie and Peter Five had already headed up to bed around half an hour ago, which had signalled the end of the sudden Steam Powered Giraffe concert.

“There’s a guest bedroom on the second floor that you’re welcome to,” Wanda says with a smile as she gets up herself. Cosmo smiles sweetly, gently lifting Upgrade into his arms. Michael stands up from the sofa, coming over to help them before he can retire to his own home.

“Come on, let’s get these sleepy bots into their stasis chambers.” Rav helps Zero get up, carefully bracing the larger robot.

“C’mon, Zero. Ya need to power down somewhere comfy, buddy.” The automaton buzzes in agreement and sleepily directs Rav to his chambers with vague gestures and occasional words. As Rav gets him into the cosy, little room, Zero takes the hat off his head and returns it to its owner’s corkscrew curls.

“Thanks for letting me borrow it, Rav. It, it was really fun to meet you. I’ll see you tomorrow, right?” Rav gives him a warm grin and adjusts his hat.

“Sure you will, pal. Rest now. See ya tomorrow.” With one last smile, the bot powers down and Rav closes the door. He makes his way back upstairs as Cosmo too returns from settling Upgrade into her own, temporary chambers.

“Tired?” asks the spaceman warmly as he slips an arm around Rav’s waist.

“Exhausted, darlin’ boy. It’s been quite the day.” Cosmo chuckles at that, steering them both towards the guest room that Wanda had described to them.

“Then you should get some sleep. I’ll stay right beside you.” Rav can’t help but nestle contently into his boyfriend’s chest as they stumble into the room. It’s times like this that he appreciates being shorter than Cosmo and being able to press up to him entirely. He’s too tired to do very much and gives a faint whine at the thought of having to undress and get into bed. Cosmo snickers, the sound deep and low as though it emerged from the core of the Earth. Moments later, Rav is in his arms and being lovingly undressed. First off is his hat, cautiously placed on the side table and then those boots that he knows Cosmo hates. Slowly, off comes Rav’s jeans and plaid shirt, accompanied by a soft kiss to his shoulder from his boyfriend. There is an intimacy to it, of course, but a kind of comfortable one, rather than an erotic one. This is certainly not the first time Cosmo has put an exhausted Rav to bed, considering Rav’s stubborn nature when it came to flying the S.S. Alexander. The spaceman undresses rapidly, leaving them just in their underwear before he settles them both into the bed, wrapping the blankets around them. Rav is just conscious enough to wriggle into his partner’s arms and kiss his nose.

“Love ya, C’mmander…”

“Love you too, Ravaxis. Sleep well.” But Rav is already fast asleep.

 

Rav wakes suddenly, in the early hours of the morning. The sun hasn’t yet risen, but the sky is a warm blue now. Cosmo is sat on the windowsill, his legs out of the open window, watching the sky and Rav shivers. The room is chilly.

“Crystal-Heart?” he asks, voice husky with sleep and the spaceman turns around.

“Did I wake you? Sorry, Rav. Just wanted to watch the sunrise.” Rav drags the blanket around his shoulders and pads over to the window, resting his head against Cosmo’s arm.

“S’alright. I’ll watch it with ya.” Wrapping his arm around him, Cosmo kisses Rav’s curls sweetly. “How are ya feelin’?” The spaceman shrugs, absently rubbing the other’s arm.

“Better. Seeing them again, the ‘bots, Wanda… It’s been so great. They’re doing so well now. But I can’t help but think if-if I h-had just come home when I changed, I, I mean, I would have gotten to see them grow. Maybe if I had come home, I wouldn’t have wanted to throw myself into the Necrostar.” Rav considers this for a long moment. It’s rare that Cosmo discusses this, discusses how he had desperately left Earth to go find the darkest place to try and die because he couldn’t cope with the mortality that was human nature. Immortality, or just long life, is such a curse. Rav understands that. His species have extraordinarily long lifespans and he has buried enough of his friends whose lifespans weren’t anywhere near that. But, had Cosmo not left Earth, had he not thrown himself through the Achilles Rift so recklessly, Rav might never have met him. He doesn’t know what to think. His life had changed so quickly 30 years ago when he had found the other floating through the void of space. Stroking his thumb over Cosmo’s knee, he sighs softly.

“Or maybe you would have tried harder. Maybe you’d have succeeded. You’d lost so much already by that time. Losin’ even more, losin’ Holly like that… that would have been so hard for ya. Ya can’t change what has happened, Starburst, not even you can do that. But I wouldn’t want it any other way. Because if ya had gone home, maybe we wouldn’t have met. An’ I meant what I said to Th’ Spine yesterday. You’ve changed my life, Peter.” Cosmo jolts a little at Rav calling him Peter. That’s so very rare. Rav likes to stick to nicknames, to ‘Commander’ or ‘Cosmo’. But it makes the spaceman smile. He leans down and gently kisses Rav, cupping his face in his hands. The kiss is soft but so passionate as though Cosmo is pouring out all of that crystalline heart of his directly into Rav’s lips. It’s heady, dizzying and when Cosmo pulls back, Rav has to steady himself against him.

“I love you, Ravaxis Starburner. And you’re right. I can’t change the past and I wouldn’t want to if it meant not meeting you. You keep me grounded.” Rav leans his head against the hand that remains on his cheeks as his face splits into a grin.

“I love ya too, Commander Cosmo, Peter Walter, Four, /Starboy/. I love you too.” Cosmo reaches down to scoop Rav up, settling him on his lap. A spike of fear jerks through Rav as his legs are suddenly dangling out of the window, but Cosmo would never let him fall. Leaning back against his boyfriend, Rav rearranges the blanket so that he isn’t cold and hums tunelessly.

“There a reason for ya wantin’ to watch the sunrise?”

“Dunno, it’s so rare that we watch them. And this is my sun, on my planet, in my old home. Guess I just wanted the nostalgia.” Rav nods, turning his head to softly kiss Cosmo’s jawline, the only bit he could reach without significant movement.

“Pretty understandable.” They are both quiet for a long while, watching as the sun begins to creep up over the horizon, turning the sky above them into a melting pot of colour. Cosmo sighs happily against Rav’s neck and the cowboy moves to gently grasp his hand. The silence stretches on when Rav notices movement in the grounds of the Manor. He looks down to see The Jon quietly wandering through the graves. The very same graves that Rav had found Cosmo and The Spine in yesterday.

“You should go talk to him,” murmurs the spaceman in his ear and Rav startles.

“He’s your family.”

“But he likes you. You got along really well yesterday.” Without warning, Cosmo slips off the windowsill and gently floats to the ground, Rav bundled up in his arms. Silently, he places the cowboy just outside the graveyard and before Rav can complain, he zips away.

It’s then Rav realises he’s wearing his underwear, a blanket and nothing else. He wasn’t really self-conscious, but he also wasn’t sure how The Jon would react.

“Cosmo!” he hisses, glowering at the purple shape of his partner, sat back on their windowsill and the robot turns around. Rav’s cheeks burn.

“Oh! Good morning, Rav. I didn’t think anyone was awake yet,” The Jon says, his voice more muted than it was yesterday.

“Hey, Th’ Jon. I was just watchin’ the sunrise. Can’t really do that when you’re on a spaceship.” The brass robot turns to look at the sun, half peeking over the hills.

“Oh, sure, of course not.”

“What are you doin’ up so early?” It takes The Jon a long moment to respond and Rav tugs the blanket tighter around his shoulders to ward off the morning chill.

“Nightmare. They’re, they’re not unusual and I know that The Spine and Rabbit and Hatchworth have them too, but I didn’t want to disturb them. So, I thought I’d come talk to Pappy.” He gestures a metallic hand at the grave he is stood in front of; it reads Colonel Peter Walter the First. Wincing at the coarse ground under his bare feet, Rav steps over to stand beside him. He wants to help him relax, feel okay but he doesn’t want to bring up any uncomfortable memories, so he questions carefully,

“What was he like? Cos- Peter never really knew him.” It’s easy, light and The Jon could brush off the question without a problem but Rav is letting him talk if he needs it. The automaton smiles, rubbing his hand over the gravestone. There is a groove there and Rav realises that this was a common thing for the robots to do.

“He was clever. Kind. A bit misguided sometimes, but he genuinely cared about us. He saw us as his children. We all miss him.” Rav sighs softly. The robots must have seen so much death, having to live on whilst their human companions withered and died.

“You should talk to Peter about all of this, ya know. It, it’s why he didn’t come home, back in the ‘60s. He couldn’t face the loss of his family.” The Jon turns to him, his brows furrowed.

“You think so? You… you love him, don’t you?” The way that the robot phrases the question isn’t searching like The Spine or wary like Wanda. It’s gentle, like he understands what that meant.

“I know so. When I met him, he was a mess. He’d thrown himself into space to try and forget that people were mortal. But he healed. I did what I could, gave him someplace to stay, a place to call home if he wanted it. I fell in love so quick, Th’ Jon, I didn’t even realise it was happenin’. An’ then, one day, we were on this planet, in this tiny, seedy bar and I said summat stupid. He laughed like I was hysterical an’ it was like he’d shot me. I’m not young; I’ve had my fair share of partners, but nothin’, nothin’ like Cosmo.” Rav can feel his chest tightening with emotion. “We’d both bin lonely for so long. It was, ah, I dunno, it was right. We fit together. We’ve got baggage an’ we argue, sometimes really badly, but I don’t think I could ever not love him, Th’ Jon. Even if he tore me apart.” The brass robot is beaming now and Rav has to take several deep breaths. He’s never told anyone that before. The cowboy isn’t really an open person when it comes to vulnerability. He wears his charm and his quips like a shield, protecting his heart beneath layers of snark. But there’s something about being around individuals who know his partner so well that he can’t hide it anymore. The Jon hugs him tightly, careful not to dislodge his blanket.

“He’s lucky to have you, Rav.” Rav presses against the other, fighting back the emotions that threaten to choke him. “You’ve looked after him so well and that’s all we ever wanted.” The robot is murmuring in his ear, softly, “All we ever wanted was for the Walters to be happy. Isn’t that what everyone wants for their family?” Rav manages to nod, but he doesn’t say anything. His family are long gone, but he’s so happy that The Jon at least has accepted him. The robot pulls back and looks over his shoulder at the rising sun.

“You should go get dressed, Rav. You must be cold.” Rav nods, turning his head away to rub his eyes quickly.

“Y-yeah, I am. I’ll, I’ll leave you to talk to your Pappy.” The Jon offers him one more, wide smile as Rav heads towards the Manor. But before he has made it very far, he is lifted off his feet by his boyfriend who carries him, bridal style, back to their room. Rav notices the tell-tale blue streaks down his face; Cosmo has been crying.

“Starlight?” He asks softly as they slip back through the open window to land in the bedroom. “Are you okay?” Cosmo doesn’t speak; he just grips Rav tightly and kisses him with such fire that the cowboy can’t think. He has to pull back, because his head is swimming from the lack of oxygen.

“I heard what you told The Jon,” says the Commander, his voice rough. “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, just, with my hearing… I love you, I- I love you so fucking much, Ravaxis. So fuck-fucking much.” Rav lets the blanket drop to the floor as his presses a hand over Cosmo’s crystalline heart, his other hand tracing galaxies over his left hip.

“I know, Starboy. Believe me, I know.”


	6. All these thoughts, I cherish them all

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rav is having such a good morning. Pancakes, teasing, his boyfriend. What could possibly go wrong?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! I'm going on a work holiday thing this weekend for 3 weeks so I'm going to try and set the next chapter to update as normal, but I'm not sure if it will work. If not, you might get it super earlier or super late! Sorry!

Rav doesn’t remember falling back asleep. He remembers being curled up in bed with the Commander, both of them basking in post-coital bliss and then, nothing until he wakes again. It’s a testament to how tired he must have been. Cosmo is still beside him, his white eyes closed, but as soon as Rav shifts, they open, and a warm smile slips on to his face.

“Good morning, Ravaxis,” he practically purrs and Rav has to fight down a shiver as he curls closer to the spaceman.

“Mornin’, space-cadet. What’s the time?”

“Around ten?” estimates Cosmo as he gets up to find his clothes. Rav watches him without moving, unashamed of the way he lets his eyes roam over Cosmo’s body. He knows that his boyfriend has realised this when his skin shifts to vibrant magenta and his nebula spark. Rav laughs but moves out of bed to get dressed himself. From downstairs, he can hear the clanking of the automatons and the faint sound of an accordion. Cosmo tilts his head, stepping over to help Rav into his shirt habitually.

“Rabbit,” he clarifies. “She’s playing ‘The Suspender Man’.” The cowboy titters softly and pecks his cheek as he fastens the buttons on his shirt.

“I liked that one. It was a bit creepy though, at the end, with him sellin’ his soul to the bog an’ all.” Cosmo chuckles and nods, reaching over to the bedside table to grab Rav’s hat. 

“They always could write odd songs. The Jon is very good at that. He wrote ‘Sound of Tomorrow’, you know?” Rav gives an interested hum at the thought, adjusting his hat.

“Course he did. He’s a wonderful lil guy.”

“Peter Fouuur? Mr Raaav?” comes an excited voice from the corridor and Rav steps out to give Upgrade the most charming smile he can manage.

“How can I help ya, Princess Upgrade?” She giggles at the use of her title.

“Hatchworth has produced pancakes and he would like to know if you would like some for breakfast.”

“We’ll be right down,” promises Cosmo with a wide smile as he fiddles with his hair.

“Okay!” chirps the pretty pink bot as she heads back downstairs to tell Hatchworth. Cosmo gives Rav a warm look that makes the cowboy feel all gooey inside.

“You’re so good to them. You just get along with them so easily and I’m so glad, Rav. This is everything I ever wanted from this trip.” Rav leans up to peck his boyfriend’s lips quickly.

“What can ah say? They found a way into my heart, jus’ like ya did, Crystalline-Dream. And I’m so glad that y’all did.” They share a final kiss before heading downstairs to find the bots.

The cowboy and the spaceman find The Jon and Zero with Hatchworth as well as three plates stacked high with pancakes. Zero is chewing on a rolled up one with what appears to be a whole lemon stuffed in it as The Jon gulps down a mouthful of syrup and pancake. Hatchworth looks very pleased with himself.

“Wow, Hatchy, this is quite summat!” crows Rav as he takes a seat to tuck in.

“Wh-y, tha-nk you, Rav! I li-ke to ma-ke food.” Cosmo settles beside Rav, who gives The Jon a side glance, hoping that he is okay after the discussion early this morning. Considering the way that he is now drinking the maple syrup straight from the bottle, he is doing okay. Rav relaxes and decides to enjoy his own pancakes with a small amount of sugar, grinning at Hatchworth who is puffing steam quietly from the pipe atop his bowler hat. 

Rav is on to his third helping of breakfast when an individual walks in that he has never seen before. He is odd, there is no denying that, with his sideways eye, spines on his back and a large Christmas oven mitt on his hand but Rav is used to aliens. He barely blinks. The Jon brightens upon seeing him, leaping up.

“Hey Norman! Hatchy made pancakes, you want some?” Norman scowls at Cosmo and Rav, and the space cowboy feels his heart sink. 

“Who are they and how did they get in without me knowing? I’m meant to be the bodyguard!” Zero laughs and stops sucking lemon juice off his metal digits to speak,

“That’s Rav and Peter Four! They’re here to catch up with us.” Beside Rav, Cosmo is very tense, and his skin is a stormy violet, a solar storm whipping up on the back of his neck. 

“Norman Becile.” Cosmo’s voice is low, gravelly in a way that sounds like stars are collapsing. The mood drops immediately. Rav scoots away from his boyfriend incrementally because he knows what’s coming next. He knows that Cosmo is furious. “Would you like to explain what you are doing here?”

“Peter, no, it’s okay!” protests The Jon but Cosmo shoots to his feet, hovering inches above the ground, his white eyes shining cruelly.

“This man is the reason I lost my father! The reason I’m like this!” Energy crackles in the spaceman’s voice and Rav wants to dive under the table. He has only seen Cosmo this angry once before. Some guy in a bar they were in had punched Rav in the face for being openly affectionate with his boyfriend so, Cosmo had incinerated him with a fierce glare. It had been simultaneously terrifying and really fucking hot. Somehow, Rav thinks that destroying someone in his family home may put a dampener on this trip. The temperature in the room is shooting up and Ravaxis can feel the energy bursting around his partner, ready to blast Norman into smithereens when Rabbit clanks in and yells,

“Peter, no!” Norman is cowering at the back of the room as Rabbit steps in front of him, her hands outstretched in a placating gesture. “It’s okay, Peter, th-th-things have changed. Norman is a ch-ch-changed man.”

“It’s his fault, Rabbit!”

“N-No, no, Peter, c-c-calm down, things are different. Norman has helped us a lot. H-H-He feels so guh-guh-guilty for helping his brother.”

“It’s true, I promise,” chips in The Jon, slowly moving towards Cosmo. The energy levels in the room don’t drop so Rav knows he has to step in, has to try and talk some sense into his partner. With a deep breath, he moves to place his hand on Cosmo’s elbow. His boyfriend whips his head around to fix his glowing eyes on the pilot but Rav does not falter.

“Starboy, you trust them more than anything. Trust them on this.” Sluggishly, but deliberately, Cosmo sinks back into his seat at the table, his skin sliding into quieter, albeit still darkened skies. The energy around them returns to normal and the whole room seems to let out a relieved sigh. Rabbit goes to speak first,

“N-Norman is m-m-married to your sister. H-he is part of the f-f-family, Four. H-he did not mean for wh-wh-what happened to. It’s ok-k-k-kay.” Hatchworth nods.

“You shou-ld for-give him, Four. He des-erves that.” Rav keeps his hand gently on Cosmo’s arm as the skin calms. He gives a slow, slightly curt nod at Norman.

“I am sorry, Norman,” says Cosmo, at length. “I should not have been so hasty with my judgement.” Norman nods, stepping out from behind Rabbit.

“Nah, I can understand why you reacted the way you did. I did a lot of things I’m not proud of, Mr Four. But I’m trying to be better and your family are really helping me there.”

“They are good like that,” Cosmo admits as he leans into Rav’s touch. The Jon snatches another pancake off the pile and stuffs it all into his mouth as Rav gently traces nebula down Cosmo’s arms. This is something he does commonly when Cosmo gets stressed or nervous or upset and being a space-god certainly didn’t stop that. His boyfriend starts to pick at a pancake, his eyes downcast. Zero offers Norman a pancake without speech and Rabbit slips over to give Cosmo a warm smile. Placing a hand on his arm, the automaton speaks gently,

“You’re doing so well, P-P-Peter. We are all so proud of y-y-you and so v-ve-very glad you came home.” Her voice is so earnest, so loving that Rav smiles despite himself as he watches his partner lean into the copper hand.

“I… I’m sorry, it’s, sometimes, I…” Cosmo huffs, frustrated and Rabbit just chuckles, in a way that could never be described as cruel. 

“You always did choke on your words when th-th-the-they were important to y-y-ya.” Rav has noticed this too; his partner sometimes is eloquent, so verbose and sometimes he can barely tell Rav he loves him. He asked him about it once and Cosmo had shrugged and mumbled that it was something he had dealt with all his life. Now, the spaceman takes a slow, unnecessary breath before speaking again.

“I’m really glad I came home, Rabbit. And I’m happy that you guys are happy.” She grins at him, flashing those silver teeth. 

“We r-r-really are.” Cosmo’s skin is still darkened and Rav keeps an eye cautiously on him. After a moment of silence, his partner stands.

“I’ll, I’ll be back.” Rav reaches out to gently rub his wrist.

“Don’t be long, Starlight. Ya know how it worries me.” Cosmo nods, giving him half a smile before disappearing out of the house. Rabbit frowns deeply.

“He’s not ok-k-kay, is he?” Flopping back in his chair, Rav exhales sharply through his nose.

“Life’s been hard for him. M’sure ya know that. He doesn’t talk about it much but… he left Earth all those years ago to die, Rabs. Long life… I’m sure y’all know the struggles.” The whole room is silent now, focused on Rav; The Jon is hunched over the table and Hatchworth is motionless. It’s Zero that speaks,

“We do. We lose so many people… But that doesn’t stop us loving them.” Rabbit gives a shaky huff of steam, her hands tight in her dress as Rav goes to speak again,

“Yah. Cosmo an’ me have that pain too. An’ sometimes, Cosm-, Petes, he gets… antsy. He’s literally made of energy an’ that can come spillin’ out in all kindsa ways. But when he gets… bad on The Alexander, he jus’ goes for a zip aroun’ the nearest moon to kinda let it out. It worries me because I don’ know if he’ll come back but he always has before.” Rav toys with the cuffs on his shirt. “It worries me because he’s my boyfriend an’ I love him. It worries me because he might get hurt. But he needs the time to cool off an’ that’s okay.” With a heavy exhale, Rabbit speaks,

“We all n-n-n-need that sometimes.” Norman nods too, but he doesn’t speak. Rav shuffles his feet, feeling judged by Peter’s family. It feels odd to be here without his partner. The Jon gives him a long look before moving away from the table to murmurs softly to Norman,

“Come on, Norm, I’ve got a cool trick to show you on my guitar.” Rav blinks, confused as to why The Jon appears to feel the need to leave when Rabbit murmurs beside him,

“Jonny was always guh-guh-good at knowing peoples emotions an’ that. Him and Norman will go distract themselves for a bit.” Zero jerks as though hearing something that Rav couldn’t and he and Hatchworth both slip out of the kitchen. Rabbit sighs again.

“Th-th-thought you could do with a lil peace,” she says and Rav nods, grateful. It’s all been a bit overwhelming with everything that has happened recently, and the cowboy takes off his hat to ruffle his own curls, just to give his hands something to do.

“Ya real good at knowin’ when people need out, huh?” Rabbit laughs, easily and shrugs her shoulders with a clank.

“We’re pretty good at p-p-people, Rav.” The cowboy nods, smiling slightly. The fact that Rabbit understands because sometimes she needs to get out too goes unsaid.

“Oh, I’ve noticed that,” Rav sighs softly as he looks down at the pancakes on the table. “Rabbit, I… I’m just, thank you for looking after Peter for so long.”

“He’s family. An-An-And we always look after our family,” she says, fixing her mismatched optics on the window. “He’ll b-b-be okay, right?”

“Sometimes things get bad. He knew it would, comin’ back home, even if you guys were great to him.” Rav closes his luminous eyes with a heavy sigh. “Bein’ on Earth brings back bad memories, ah guess.” The room is silent for a long moment, punctuated only by the hiss of steam through Rabbit’s vents.

“H-H-He’s somehow h-happier and more b-b-broken than before,” she whispers, as though scared that Rav would be upset by that. “You m-m-make him better but, but, but, he’s hurt now.”

“He’s come a long way since I first met him, like, 30 years ago. He’s less tense, less… anxious, but it don’ mean he’s completely fine. But that’s okay. I ain’t okay either. We still cope. We need each other, ah guess. He always comes back to me.” Rabbit steps over and gently places a copper hand over Rav’s green one, which causes him to snap open his eyes.

“This, this, this family has been through enough h-hardships for anyone. But we keep going. And we keep loving ea-ea-each other. You’re part of that love now, Rav.” That hits Rav hard in the chest. His own family had pretty much rejected him when he left their home because he wanted to travel the stars. He has chosen this life, but it still hurts even now, so many years later, because he knows he has no one to go home to, no one to recall his childhood stories to his partner. No friends aside from Gidget and Booplax and Cosmo. No family to speak of.

But here, worlds away from his biological family, he is beginning to find new friends, new people to love him.

“I’m glad ya think that. I, I haven’t had a family in a long time. They didn’ really agree with me leavin’, so um, I was kinda lost when I first got The Alexander. I’m glad ya have, um, accepted me,” he manages to choke out, forcing his voice to be as flat as he can. Rabbit gives him a knowing smile.

“You’re Peter’s p-p-partner and th-there is no doubt he l-loves you. And I can see why, Rav. You’re easy to love. You’re friendly and you-you-you’re good to him. An-an-and your family were stupid not to s-s-see that it was worth holding on to ya.”

“Guess they didn’ see what y’all do.”

“Th-th-then they were blind too,” asserts Rabbit, crooking one metal eyebrow. “You’ve g-g-got friends h-here, Rav. Don’t you go f-fo-for-forgetting that.”

“Ah, ah won’t,” he murmurs, voice thick. She gives him a wide grin. They sit there, quietly and Rav feels a swell of bittersweet emotions in his heart. This is precisely what Cosmo has wished for this entire journey and he wasn’t here to see it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title is from Photographic Memories, from Quintessential!


	7. I will live for tomorrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rav really starts to fit in as he meets the final member of the Walter family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is super early, but I'm going to be away for three weeks, so I thought I would treat you! Last chapter will be out when I get back.
> 
> Enjoy!

Rav estimates that he’s been sat with Rabbit for around 10 minutes in companionable silence when he hears voices outside the room. He recognises one as The Spine, his melodious baritone familiar by now but the other voice is not one he has heard before. It has the familiar Walter flair that Rav has discovered whilst spending time with the family but currently it is whiny, arguing with The Spine about something.

“-but I was midway through, Spine! And I ate the day before yesterday, I promise.”

“Your mother is getting upset and we have guests, you will like them.”

“Ugh, I rarely do.” That makes The Spine chuckle as he steps into the kitchen. His optics settle on his sister for a moment and he is quiet as a young man steps into the room behind him wearing a wooden mask with a keyhole that covers his entire face. The man addresses Rav immediately,

“You’re not human. I mean, sorry, people are always telling me I should be more careful about speaking. And by people, I mean my mother. You, you aren’t human, are you?” Rav snorts. This kid reminds him of when he first met Cosmo and he simply blurted out, ‘you’re green.’

“Naw, I’m not human. Alien. ‘Name’s Ravaxis, but Rav’s jus’ fine.” He glances over to The Spine and Rabbit but they seem to be doing that thing that the robots have done a few times over the last day or so. The ‘bots sometimes just look at each other for a few moments, like they’re having a conversation Rav can’t hear.

“Alien, huh?” says the masked man, his voice brightening with excitement. “That’s pretty cool! Oh right, I’m Peter Six, but Six is great. What are you doing here? I mean, I know Walter Manor is often home to weird and wonderful creatures, but I don’t think we’ve ever had an alien here. At least, not that I know of.” Rav smiles a little at the babbling from the other. Oh, he can definitely see the Walter in him. In a couple of ways, he reminds him a lot of his own boyfriend. Rabbit, clearly finished with whatever her and The Spine were doing, cuts in before Rav can explain,

“Rav’s here with an ancestor of yours, Peter Four. I’m s-s-sure you’ll like him wh-when he comes back.”

“Where is he?” asks Peter Six, lifting his mask to absently chew on a pancake from the abandoned stack and Rav keeps his eyes off the man. He clearly wears the mask for a reason. The cowboy winces at the question but it is The Spine that speaks, almost breezily.

“Just having a look around the gardens. Eat first and then we will go find him.” Rabbit gives Rav a quick smile and then heads to the door.

“Imma go see if-if-if Upgrade and Th’ Jon wanna practice with me.” And she hops out, humming ‘Honeybee’ to herself. The Spine levels Rav with a kindly but stern look and suddenly Rav knows that he knows where Cosmo is and why.

“How do ya do that?” he blurts out, scowling at the titanium bot and The Spine’s mouth twitches up in a sideways smile.

“Do what?”

“Know things! Like, y’all just kinda, know things that the others knew without saying it!” Peter Six laughs around his pancakes,

“They’ve got like this thing, in their heads, right? It’s called the internal telegraph and they use it to talk to each other without saying stuff. The bots can bounce it off the wifi so they can talk over a large distance. It’s pretty cool.”

“So Rabbit jus’ told ya…”

“What happened with Peter, yes,” completes The Spine, taking a long drink of water. Rav pauses for a second to think about that. It makes sense, but he doesn’t know how it makes him feel. On one hand, he is happy that The Spine is aware of the issue without him having to explain it all again, but equally, he wasn’t sure if he wanted him to know. He guesses that it is easiest this way. The Spine appears to sense this confliction and gently places a cold metal hand on Rav’s shoulder.

“I just want him to be okay too, Rav.” He murmurs warmly and Rav nods. He knows that.

“I hope he’ll be back soon. It always scares me when he’s gone for a while.” The automaton tilts his head slightly to one side.

“Understandable.” Peter Six watches this exchange with interest, now making his way through a fourth pancake.

“Spine likes you,” the Walter asserts firmly and the ‘bot huffs steam out of his cheek vents in what looks like an expression of blushing or embarrassment. “He’ll deny it, but I know he does. He’s only that honestly polite to people he likes.” Rav can’t help but give an almost relieved laugh at that as his shoulders slump. Being accepted was such a nice feeling. Peter Six scoops up another pancake and heads to the door out of the kitchen.

“C’mon then, let’s go find the other Peter. I wanna meet him.” The Spine rolls his photoreceptors and Rav is struck by the sudden knowledge that the Walters taught everyone, even robots and aliens without pupils, to do this.

“Alright, alright. Rav, is that okay?” Rav stands and nods, readjusting his hat habitually.

“Yah, we should go see if Cos- Peter’s back.”

* * *

 

The three of them head outside and Rav imagines the scene from the viewpoint of a normal human. An alien, a robot and masked man together. It almost sounded like the beginning of a joke.

Luckily for them, Cosmo is sat calmly in a tree by the edge of the Walter grounds when they approach. His skin is a pale lilac colour and Rav sighs a little. He’s been thinking too much. Ignoring Six and The Spine, he approaches the tree and holds out one hand.

“Where did’ja go?” he questions warmly, and Cosmo floats down to take his hand as Rav guides him towards the ground.

“’Round Mars and Venus twice, then sat on the moon for a minute or so. Helped,” mutters Cosmo gruffly, linking his fingers with his partner’s. Rav gets on his tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

“Glad ya back. Ya know how I worry. The ‘bots were worryin’ too.” The Spine does the huff-steam-through-his-cheek-vents thing again and Rav is certain now that it means he’s blushing. Six tilts his head to the side and speaks,

“You’re Four, right? Dad… I mean, Five, he said you died.” Cosmo shrugs lightly.

“I didn’t come home after my… blue-matter-accident-combined-with-space-travel issue. It was natural to assume I was gone. But I’m not, I’m back now. I felt… guilty for being away for so long.”

“Why now?” asks Six, in a way that could have sounded offensive, but just didn’t. Cosmo sighs and a wave of magenta shoots over his neck.

“We were close to the Achilles Rift, where I had run away and nearly died and I suddenly thought, they never knew what happened to me. No one ever knew. And that spurred me to come home and try to repair stuff.” This is a lot of speaking, thinks Rav idly. This is the kind of talking that Cosmo didn’t do a lot, but there was clearly something about being with his family like this that made him relax. Six nods, speaking,

“This family always was a bit of a mess when it came to talking about things like that. I didn’t leave my lab for ages when this happened…” and he moves to slip the mask off. Rav barely blinks, but even for him, this is odd.

Because Peter Six does not have a face. He has a swirl of blue precisely where his face should be. Cosmo give a sideways grin.

 “Damn, the last set of Walters got unlucky, huh? Let me guess, robot issue?” Beside Six, The Spine scowls.

“Hey!” he complains, folding his arms in a perfect imitation of someone almost sulking. Cosmo and Six laugh.

“Nah,” says the younger Walter. “My own fault for experimenting with blue matter late at night without sleep for a long time.” Cosmo’s smile slips into something more like a grimace and Peter Six replaces his mask.

“Sorry, man. That can’t have been easy.” Six gives a shrug, almost light-hearted at what happened to him.

“It functions like I have a face, like I can see and smell and all but its just… not there. Hey-ho. We Walters continue to soldier on.” Rav tilts his head slightly. He thinks that perhaps Peter Six is speaking jovially to hide his emotions, considering the serious nature of his accident, but he is so guilty of doing this that he would never call anyone out on it. Cosmo nods slightly and holds out the hand he is not clinging to Rav with.

“Well, it’s nice to finally meet you, Six.” Peter Six shakes excitedly.

“And you, Four! So, space travel right? I’ve been considering making a probe, just you know to explore more of what is out there. Think you could give me a hand?” Cosmo blinks, confused at being asked this straight away.

“I, uh, I never really got the Walter knack when it came to mechanics-” he begins to protest before The Spine cuts in,

“Untrue. You were a perfectly good mechanic, Four, you just wanted to do something else. And we weren’t going to begrudge you that.” Rav snickers softly as Cosmo huffs, caught out.

“Alright, so I chose to do something else. Still, I don’t think I’m going to be much help with this probe. I mean, I guess I could talk about what we’ve found out there and the radiation it might encounter as well as the life-forms…” Cosmo trails off as he realises that Peter Six has produced a small black jotter from his inner pocket and is scrawling things into it in messy shorthand with a very blunt pencil.

“No, no, that would be so perfect! I want to know all of that kinda stuff. Please, Four, come with me to the lab and give me a hand? Also, The Spine totally approves of your boyfriend, just so you know.” That makes the Spine splutter, Cosmo laugh and Rav go chartreuse with embarrassment.

“I’m very glad,” murmurs Cosmo and he is looking at Rav now, with the melty-eyes again so Rav pecks his cheek quickly.

“Me too,” mutters the space cowboy, almost evasively.

“But yes, I will come to your lab,” replies Cosmo, eyes on Six for a second before returning to Ravaxis and beside them, the titanium bot gives a low huff.

“Once you have all finished embarrassing me, shall Rav and I go find where the many other members of this family have got to whilst you two nerd out?” Six chortles and nods, heading back towards the house. The Spine follows him, still looking a little put out. After a moment longer gazing at him, Cosmo gently takes Rav’s hand and they head back towards the house. Rav couldn’t remember a time when he felt so accepted. He is happy to follow The Spine back inside and into a small practice room where Hatchworth is humming ‘Fancy Shoes’ under his breath as he tidies up the instruments. The Spine asks,

“Hey, Hatchy, where’s everyone else?” Turning slowly, Hatchworth gives an easy shrug.

“Gone to fi-nd some-th-ing to play, I think. Hello Mi-ster Rav!”

“Just Rav, please,” Rav automatically corrects him, knowing that his cheeks will be warm now. The Spine huffs and heads back towards the door.

“I’d better go check that there are no issues. See you both later.” It is then that Ravaxis realises he has barely spoken to Hatchworth, who returns to carefully cleaning a guitar.

“Um…” says the cowboy eloquently, trying to think of a way to start conversation. “So, how are ya?” Hatchworth gives a small laugh at that, shrugging his shoulders with an audible clank.

“I am the same as always. Enjoy-ing my family being around. How are you?” Shrugging right back at him, Rav responds,

“Good, yeah.” Hatchworth tilts his head to the left sharply in what appeared to be a consideration.

“You are not. You are nervous.” Rav snorts a little, caught out.

“Sure, sure, but that’s pretty normal, right? I mean, ahm meeting my boyfriend’s family an’ all that. It’s bound to make anyone nervous.” Hatchworth speaks plainly,

“I do not think so. You are a good man, Rav. Mi-ster Peter Four clearly loves you very much. And that is good enough for all of us.”

“I, uh,” Rav clears his throat. “Thanks. I’m sorry we haven’t spoken much, Hatchworth. Guess there’s just a lot of family to meet.” That makes the automaton laugh as he sides the guitar.

“Yes. But that has always been the way it is with the Walters.”

“I like it,” admits Rav quietly, to Hatchworth’s clear delight.

“Me too, Mi-ster Rav. Me too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title from Burning in the Stratosphere, The Vice Quadrant!


	8. Home is anywhere we reside in our minds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ravaxis realises how deep his love for the Walters, humans and robots alike goes. But that doesn't mean that he can help returning to the stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! Last chapter! Thank you all for sticking with this! It's been such a joy to write and I'm definitely going to make it into a series. I have so many idea for Rav/Cosmo goofs now. Keep your eyes out!  
> Thank you again for reading, I hope you enjoy this conclusion!

Time seems to pass so much faster on Earth than in space for Ravaxis. Before he knows it, Cosmo and he have been staying at Walter Manor for four days. Zero teaches him how to play the bass guitar; Wanda and The Spine back off in their mildly protective manner over Cosmo and The Jon flits between sincerely discussing love with him and stealing his hat. Rav feels ecstatic. Is this what it was like to have a family? It’s fantastic. Rav has noticed that Cosmo has melted similarly and the sharp edges around his heart that Rav has grown accustomed to worming around have begun to dull.

Today, they are sat in the gardens. Peter Five, Annie and Norman are sat a way to his left and Cosmo is chattering with Wanda about something. The Jon is chasing a butterfly around the gardens and Rav can’t help but smile. He knows that Cosmo and himself will have to return to the S.S. Alexander today; they’ve left Booplax and Gidget for too long but for now, he is happy to just enjoy being with them all. A clunk beside him startles the cowboy slightly and he jerks, turning to look at Zero who has settled beside him.

“Mr Four says you have to go today.” The ‘bot sounds sullen. Rav chuckles softly.

“Yeah, sorry, Zero. We gotta go back up to th’ stars, ya know. I’ve got Booplax an’ Gidget to look after.” Zero huffs out steam unhappily.

“Awwwh. I really loved you being around. It was so nice to have new people over. Th’ Jon and Th’ Spine really love you.” Zero is fiddling with his hands, quiet clinking from his fingers.

“Don’t say it like ah’ll never be back, ey? This has been such a good trip for me too. But… ah’ve got wanderlust, Zero. The stars are my home an’ I don’ think I could ever not be out there, findin’ new planets an’ annoyin’ other aliens.” He pauses as he sees the automaton slump slightly. “But hey! I’ve met some of the greatest people I ever have in my long, long life. Including all the ‘bots. Y’all are completely fantastic. Don’t ya forget it.” Rav pats Zero’s shoulder and the automaton gives him a wide toothy grin.

“I get it. But, you gotta come back.” Rav nods, promising their return with a mere smile and looks over at his partner. Cosmo and Wanda are talking to Rabbit as The Spine sits lazily beside them, his head tilted back as the warm summer sun glints off his titanium plating. The scene is so idyllic and Rav is sure it would be even more so were it not for the inhuman nature of most of the people in it.

Rav adores it.  

Cosmo turns, flashing Rav a wide, easy grin as waves of warm fuchsia spiral over his shoulders, exposed by the black tank top he is wearing. Rav can’t help but beam right back. Cosmo looks so fucking happy right now. The spaceman gets up and slowly wanders over to Rav, stretching out in the warm sunlight.

“Hey, Space-Cadet,” purrs Rav as Zero shuffles away to give them some privacy.

“Hello, darling,” murmurs Cosmo as he slides one arm around Rav’s shoulders and the cowboy snuggles up against him. He’s so warm.

“Are ya alright? Havin’ fun?” The spaceman nods, kissing his cheek.

“Yeah! I… it’s just so great to be with everyone. Though… I know we have to go tonight. Booplax and Gidget can’t be trusted alone for much longer,” he teases slightly and Rav chortles softly. The pilot knows, that whilst his partner needed the trip home, he loves the stars too much to stay here. He always had. It was why he joined the army in the first place, over 60 years ago.

“I’m sure the Alexander’s still in one piece.” Cosmo shrugs playfully and turns his pupil-less eyes on where Zero has gone to play with the Jon. Sighing happily, he speaks,

“I am so grateful that you came with me. I wouldn’t have been okay without you, Rav. I… I guess I forget how much you ground me.” He turns to face the other. “You mean everything to me. You are my entire _universe_. Without… without you,” he makes a wide sweeping gesture and Rav cuts him off with a kiss.

“I know, darlin’ boy. An’, for the record, I’m very glad I decided to come with ya. Your family are… incredible and so acceptin’. I’m really glad I met ‘em.”

“Me too,” is all Cosmo says. They are both quiet for a short while, merely basking in the rays of the sun. Eventually, Wanda comes over.

“Annie would like to know what you would like for dinner. She says that she could whip up some pizzas? Or perhaps burgers?” Rav gestures, almost lazily to Cosmo, referencing his desire to allow his partner to decide with body language.

“Um, burgers sounds lovely, Wanda. Will Matt, Michael and Steve be there too?” asks the spaceman and his sister nods.

“Yeah, they’ve got rehearsal with the ‘bots this evening, so they’ll come over in the next hour or so.”

“Excellent!” says Rav, sitting up. “We’ll getta say goodbye. We really must be off back home to the Alexander tonight. Booplax an’ Gidget’ll be missin’ us.”

“Well, you’re always welcome here, you understand? You better not be strangers now.” Cosmo chuckles softly and nods.

“I promise, Wanda, we won’t be. Now I’ve got my family back, do you honestly think I would ever just abandon them again?” Wanda just smiles.

“Keep a hold on that boy alright, Cosmo? He’s very lovely and all of the ‘bots are far too attached for you two to ever break up.” Rav is a little thrown by the way this has turned out. Only four days ago, he was being threatened by this women to never hurt her little brother and now she is scolding the same man, telling him that he must never hurt Rav. Is this what having a family feels like, wonders the cowboy idly, for the second time in the last hour.

“Oh, I know.” Cosmo’s voice is fond, easy. “Don’t fret. I have loved him for 30 years and I can’t see it changing any time soon.” Rav can feel his cheeks burning and Wanda laughs, waving a hand easily.

“Good.” And she sweeps away to talk to Annie about dinner.

* * *

 

Rav can’t keep the smile off his face all the way through the rest of the afternoon, especially not when the human members of the band arrive a little earlier and the Jon ropes Michael into giving him a piggy back across the lawn. The smile doesn’t fade when Rabbit teases him about Cosmo, like she commonly has done over the last few days. And it remains constant as the flesh and blood beings traipse inside to get the burgers promised by Annie.

“Hey, Rav?” asks Steve once they’re settled around the table.

“Yeah?”

“Think you could take me up on that ship of yours sometime?” The cowboy laughs and nods easily.

“Sure! I promise, when we come back, I’ll let ya get on the Alexander. It’ll be fun for us all.”

“When are you leaving?” asks Peter Six, who has been coaxed out of his lab for the meal. Cosmo is the one who replies,

“In an hour or so. It… it has been so very lovely to see you all but even the best of visits must end.” There is silence around the table for a long moment.

“Well,” says Wanda, getting up to fetch a couple of bottles of wine from the fridge. “Guess we should have a drink to celebrate the Walter family being reunited.” Rav accepts the wine with a grin and holds it up in a toast.

“To family,” Annie says.

“To family!” they all chorus right back and Rav’s eyes meet Peter Six’s mask as he takes a drink. And, he swears, that if the youngest Walter had eyes, he would be winking.

* * *

 

Saying goodbye is harder than Rav ever thought it was going to be. Annie gives him a box of home-cooked food with a good-natured quip from her husband about making sure he stays healthy. There are hugs from all of the human band members, as well as the teasing that always comes with it. Steve and Matt are insistent on seeing the S.S. Alexander next time, so Rav promises to update the technology on getting up and down without obvious landing issues. Peter Six hands Cosmo a small box.

“So ya can call,” mutters the masked man with shrug. “Don’t want you forgetting to come back.” Cosmo hugs him so tightly that Six squeaks a little.

“Thank you, Six. I’ll be sure to call so you can tell me all about that satellite you’re working on.” Six laughs and nods easily.

“Sounds good.” There is a small cough behind Rav and he turns to see all the Walter bots waiting to say goodbye. He gets a mildly formal handshake from Hatchworth and The Spine, but both of them are grinning. Rabbit punches his shoulder and tells him to look after Cosmo, to which Rav chuckles but makes no promises. Unexpectedly, when he bows to Upgrade, she throws her small pink arms around his neck and gives him a firm hug. As Ravaxis pulls away, there is a cold hand on his cheek and he looks up at The Jon.

“Thank you, Ravaxis. It has been so lovely to meet you,” says the bronze ‘bot, sincere in that way that only The Jon has.

“An’ you, Th’ Jon. It’s… it’s been really great.” Then the robot is hugging the cowboy firmly and Rav melts into it. Behind him, he can hear The Spine assuring Cosmo that he was always welcome and loved here.

“You’ve got a home here, Rav,” murmurs The Jon into Rav’s ear and the alien can feel his chest tightening and his eyes welling up with iridescent tears. “Don’t you forget that.”

“It ain’t somethin’ I’m used to,” he admits in a whisper and the bronze automaton chuckles.

“Well, now you can get used to it.” The Jon releases Rav but he only gets a second of peace before Zero is hugging him, tight enough to almost crack his ribs.

“Woah, buddy, watch the ribs!” he yelps and Zero loosens the grip immediately.

“Sorry, sorry! Just… I’m going to miss you.”

“Hey, what did I tell you earlier? I’ll be back, don’t ya sweat it.” Zero nods and hugs him again.

“I know. Still gonna miss you though, Rav.”

Ravaxis grins, soft and kind.

“I’ll miss ya too, buddy. Get yerself a good hat, ya hear? I wanna see it when I see ya again.” Zero laughs and nods, stepping back to stand beside The Jon.

“I will!” Rav grins and turns to ask Cosmo if he is ready to go, only to see him hugging The Spine tightly.

“Take good care of yourself, you hear? And Ravaxis. I like him.” Cosmo laughs wetly and nods.

“You got it. I’m… I’m so glad I came home, Spine. I don’t think I could have lived with myself for much longer if I hadn’t.” The bot smiles and cups Cosmo’s glowing cheek easily.

“I’m very glad you came home too, Peter. We all love you. And we’ll be waiting to see you again.” With a nod, the spaceman hugs the silver automaton once more before giving his sister one last hug. Then, he takes Rav’s hand. The cowboy flashes him a grin and then turns back to the assembled crowd of humans and robots in front of him.

His new family.

Returning to the S.S. Alexander had never been so hard, but Rav would not have changed one second of this trip for all the stars in the Vice Quadrant.

It was everything that he and Cosmo had needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title from It's Cosmic, The Vice Quadrant!


End file.
